The Skipjack apparently first appeared on the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland in the late 1800s. Its development was precipitated by the decline in oyster harvests, and the need for an inexpensive shallow draft vessel.

The design hasnt changed in over 150 years, and the average Skipjack has now lasted well over three-quarters of a century, a tribute to their excellent construction. Skipjacks carry a sail design known as the “Leg-O-Mutton” Sloop Rig consisting of a main sail and a jib. The standard design formula calls for a mast height which is the same the as length of the vessel on deck, plus the width of the beam.

According to legend, no Skipjack was ever built from a formal set of plans, but rather by “rack of the eye”. They were developed from the lines of the Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe, the Brogan, and the famous Clipper Ships. They are unique to the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Virginia, and the few remaining skipjacks still dredge oysters under sail during the fall and winter oyster season on the Chesapeake Bay

This 64′ yawl was constructed at the A/B Neglinge-Varvet yard of Sweden and launched in 1953. She looks to be a powerful boat and very capable cruiser. Construction is of white oak for all structural members and single planked of mahogany.

The J-Class sailing yacht Shamrock V was built in 1930 for Sir Thomas Lipton’s fifth and final America’s Cup challenge. Designed by Camper & Nicholsons, she was the first British yacht to be built to the new J Class Rule and is the only remaining J Class to have been built in wood.

Competition for the America’s Cup, the oldest and one of the most prestigious sporting trophies in the world, began in England in 1851. The newly founded New York Yacht Club was challenged by the Royal Yacht Squadron, then the most prestigious yacht club in the world, to take part in The Solent Races, sailing races that took place on the body of water between the Isle of Wight and Great Britain. Answering this challenge, the New York Yacht Club assembled a team to cross the Atlantic and race with their contender, the yacht America. The schooner America was designed and built by George Steers in 1850 at the urging of the New York Yacht Club to build a fast sailboat.

The America’s Cup in Newport, Rhode Island:
In 1930, J boats raced in the first America’s Cup races that were held in Newport, RI. During this era the races were held at the mouth of Narragansett Bay off Breton Reef in the Atlantic Ocean. From 1930 to 1937, the America’s Cup the course was 30 miles long. In 1958, when the era of the 12 Meters began the course was shortened to just over 24 miles. For over 50 years Newport proved to be a perfect venue for the America’s Cup because of its light and predictable winds and small volume of commercial traffic.

The first race was a fleet race between boats the New York Yacht Club’s schooner America and 15 yachts from England’s Royal Yacht Squadron in the Club’s annual 53-nautical-mile race around the Isle of Wight. America won, finishing in front of the England’s Aurora. The cup was taken to New York and the sailors wrote The Deed of Gift to establish the trophy as “a perpetual challenge cup for friendly competition between nations.”